The mastodon and lemmy content I’m seeing feels like 90% of it comes from people who are:
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~30 years old or older
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tech enthusiasts/workers
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linux users
There’s nothing wrong with that particular demographic or anything, but it doesn’t feel like a win to me if the entire fediverse is just one big monoculture.
I wonder what it is that is keeping more diverse users away? Is picking a server/federation too complicated? Or is it that they don’t see any content that they like?
Thoughts?
I feel like it’s more convenience than simplicity that’s the issue. Though, I’d argue that the whole federation thing is way more complicated than what most people would likely tolerate. I tried to explain it to my husband, and it was even hard to explain succinctly. Like, I’m sure someone has come up with a way to say it, but it’s not as straightforward as you make it sound. At least, I don’t think it is.
I always use the email analogy - you and a friend can be signed up with different providers but still communicate with each other. It’s helped me explain the concept to a few people.
The email one is good. Someone I was explaining it to said “so it’s like Napster for social media?”. After thinking about it for a second I just said “yes! That’s pretty close”. It’s not really like Napster, but that’s a good enough analogy that they understood.
Same here! I’m always surprised by people now refusing to consider the idea, just wanting one universal company/service. It’s like they can make room for email in their understanding, but can’t do that again today. 🤷♀️